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Monday, January 21, 2008

Brazilian Ford Ka

Ford is struggling to recover its best historical market position in Brazil (a third place) and even improve it. A major step towards this goal was the factory in Camaçari, Bahia, which dates from 2001 and now operates full time, producing a variation of the current European Ford Fiesta, a sedan version of it and a small SUV, the EcoSport, also based on the hatch. Anyway, the company still did not have a high volume vehicle to sell at competitive prices. The Ford Ka, a four-seater with a small trunk, was produced in Sao Bernardo do Campo, Sao Paulo, and was reasonably cheap, but not a good offer for low-income families, who need space for at least five people in the car and a good luggage capacity for the best price possible. The solution for Ford was creating perhaps the cheapest of its current cars in the world, the new Brazilian Ford Ka.

Presented in December, 2007, the Brazilian Ka uses lots of parts that are already produced and used in other vehicles, such as the Fiesta rear mirrors, the doors of the previous Ka and some other solutions to keep the price low. The platform of this “new” car is the same used for the Mark V Fiesta, what improved the wheelbase and the space for passengers. Now, the Brazilian Ford Ka can carry five people and 263 l of luggage with a reasonable deal of comfort.

Measuring 3,84 m in lengh, 1,64 m in width , 1,42 m in height and with a wheelbase of 2,45 m, the Ka, which will be sold from February on, is still being offered in a three-door configuration, but a five-door version will also be sold in the future, as soon as costs of development are paid. Power will come from two four cylinder Zetec Rocam engines, a 1-liter that generates a maximum of 73 cv and a 1.6-liter that produces 110 cv. Both are flexfuel, capable of running on 100% gasoline, 100% ethanol or any blend of them. If the car succeeds in Brazil, it is very likely to be sold in other emerging markets, such as India, China, Mexico and other Latin America countries.